﻿Act One Scene One Lines 1-125
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Act One Scene One Lines 1-125 Modern Translation

THESEUS and HIPPOLYTA enter with PHILOSTRATE and others.
THESEUS
Our wedding day is almost here, my beautiful Hippolyta. We’ll be
getting married in four days, on the day of the new moon. But it seems
to me that the days are passing too slowly—the old moon is
taking too long to fade away! That old, slow moon is keeping me from
getting what I want, just like an old widow makes her stepson wait to
get his inheritance.

HIPPOLYTA
No, you’ll see, four days will quickly turn into four nights.
And since we dream at night, time passes quickly then. Finally the new
moon, curved like a silver bow in the sky, will look down on our
wedding celebration.

THESEUS
Go, Philostrate, get the young people of Athens ready to celebrate and
have a good time. Sadness is only appropriate for funerals. We
don’t want it at our festivities.

Exit PHILOSTRATE

Hippolyta, I wooed you with violence, using my sword, and got you to
fall in love with me by injuring you. But I’ll marry you under
different circumstances—with extravagant festivals, public
festivities, and celebration.

Enter EGEUS and his daughter HERMIA, and LYSANDER and DEMETRIUS

EGEUS
Long live Theseus, our famous and respected duke!

THESEUS
Thanks, good Egeus. What’s new with you?

EGEUS
I’m here, full of anger, to complain about my daughter
Hermia.—Step forward, Demetrius.—My lord, this man,
Demetrius, has my permission to marry her.—Step forward,
Lysander.—But this other man, Lysander, has cast a magic spell
over my child’s heart.—You, you, Lysander, you’ve
given her poems, and exchanged tokens of love with my daughter.
You’ve pretended to be in love with her, singing fake love
songs softly at her window by moonlight, and you’ve captured
her imagination by giving her locks of your hair, rings, toys,
trinkets, knickknacks, little presents, flowers, and
candies—things that can really influence an impressionable
young person. You’ve connived to steal my daughter’s
heart, making her stubborn and harsh instead of obedient (like she
should be).—And, my gracious duke, if she won’t agree to
marry Demetrius right now, I ask you to let me exercise the right that
all fathers have in Athens. Since she belongs to me, I can do what I
want with her—as the law says: I can either make her marry
Demetrius—or have her killed.

THESEUS
What do you have to say for yourself, Hermia? Think carefully, pretty
girl. You should think of your father as a god, since he’s the
one who gave you your beauty. To him, you’re like a figure that
he’s sculpted out of wax, and he has the power to keep that
figure intact or to disfigure it. Demetrius is an admirable man.

HERMIA
So is Lysander.

THESEUS
You’re right, Lysander’s admirable too. But since your
father doesn’t want him to marry you, you have to consider
Demetrius to be the better man.

HERMIA
I wish my father could see them with my eyes.

THESEUS
No, you must see them as your father sees them.

HERMIA
Your grace, please forgive me. I don’t know what makes me think
I can say this, and I don’t know if speaking my mind to such a
powerful and noble person as yourself will damage my reputation for
modesty. But please, tell me the worst thing that could happen to me
if I refuse to marry Demetrius.

THESEUS
You’ll either be executed or you’ll never see another
man again. So think carefully about what you want, beautiful Hermia.
Consider how young you are, and question your feelings. Then decide
whether you could stand to be a nun, wearing a priestess’s
habit and caged up in a cloister forever, living your entire life
without a husband or children, weakly chanting hymns to the cold and
virginal goddess of the moon. People who can restrain their passions
and stay virgins forever are holy. But although a virgin priestess
might be rewarded in heaven, a married woman is happier on Earth. A
married woman is like a rose who is picked and made into a beautiful
perfume, while a priestess just withers away on the stem.

HERMIA
I’d rather wither away than give up my purity to someone I
don’t love.

THESEUS
Take some time to think about this. By the time of the next new
moon—the day when Hippolyta and I will be married—be
ready either to be executed for disobeying your father, to marry
Demetrius as your father wishes, or to take a vow to spend the rest of
your life as a virgin priestess of the moon goddess.

DEMETRIUS
Please give in, sweet Hermia.—And Lysander, stop acting like
she’s yours. I’ve got more of a right to her than you
do.

LYSANDER
Her father loves you, Demetrius. So why don’t you marry him and
let me have Hermia?

EGEUS
It’s true, rude Lysander, I do love him. That’s why
I’m giving him my daughter. She’s mine, and I’m
giving her to Demetrius.

LYSANDER
(to THESEUS) My lord, I’m just as noble and rich as he is. I
love Hermia more than he does. My prospects are as good as his, if not
better. And beautiful Hermia loves me—which is more important
than all those other things I’m bragging about. Why
shouldn’t I be able to marry her? Demetrius—and
I’ll say this to his face—courted Nedar’s
daughter, Helena, and made her fall in love with him. That sweet lady,
Helena, loves devoutly. She adores this horrible and unfaithful man.

THESEUS
I have to admit I’ve heard something about that, and meant to
ask Demetrius about it, but I was too busy with personal matters and
it slipped my mind.—Anyway, Demetrius and Egeus, both of you,
come with me. I want to say a few things to you in private.—As
for you, beautiful Hermia, get ready to do what your father wants,
because otherwise the law says that you must die or become a nun, and
there’s nothing I can do about that.—Come with me,
Hippolyta. How are you, my love?—Demetrius and Egeus, come with
us. I want you to do some things for our wedding, and I also want to
discuss something that concerns you both.

EGEUS
We’re following you not only because it is our duty, but also
because we want to.

Exeunt. Manent LYSANDER and HERMIA

Journal Question: Theseus lectures Hermia on the authority of parents.
How have you been influenced and shaped by your parents or elders?
List the top 10 lessons you have learned from the people who have
raised you.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.